WBRZ - Baton Rouge

Tagged News

• AG: 2 caregivers arrested for Medicaid fraud

  June 7, 2013 11:18 AM

  BATON ROUGE - State Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says two personal care attendants have been booked with Medicaid fraud for filing false claims. Caldwell said in a news release that 46-year-old Sybil M. Mashia, of Destrehan, surrendered on Thursday and 36-year-old Christi L. Moore, of Schriever, surrendered for arrest on... more »

• Worker accused of blowing Medicaid money at casinos

  June 4, 2013 1:30 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Authorities arrested a former Department of Health and Hospitals accountant today and accused her of stealing more than $1 million from the state Medicaid program, then blowing it at casinos. Investigators charged Deborah Crowder Loper, 46, with theft by fraud, money laundering and malfeasance in office.... more »

• Rayville woman pleads guilty in Medicaid fraud

  May 31, 2013 11:52 AM

  RAYVILLE - Attorney General Buddy Caldwell's office says the former owner of a Rayville personal care services agency has pleaded guilty to defrauding the state's Medicaid program. The guilty plea was entered Thursday by 52-year-old Patricia A. Bell of Rayville. Caldwell says in a news release that Bell was charged... more »

• Former Baton Rouge lawyer sentenced in fraud case

  May 23, 2013 2:18 PM

  BATON ROUGE - James M. Bernhard III has been sentenced to 27 months in prison Thursday for wire fraud in connection with the theft of over $453,000 from his former law firm's trust account. Bernhard, who pleaded guilty to the wire fraud charge, surrendered his law license shortly before he... more »

• Home improvement fraud arrest made

  May 20, 2013 11:22 AM

  PINEVILLE - Rapides Parish sheriff's deputies say a complaint from a homeowner has led to an arrest. . The homeowner contracted a Pineville man for repairs after the Christmas 2012 tornado damaged his home. Deputies tell The Town Talk 58-year-old Joe Jaime was arrested and booked into the Rapides Parish... more »

• Three accused of filing false Medicaid claims

  May 17, 2013 12:01 PM

  ZACHARY - The Louisiana Attorney General's Office announced three Zachary women have been arrested and charged with filing false Medicaid claims. Investigators said the three women, all personal care attendants, filed timesheets claiming they were working with Medicaid recipients at the same time they were actually working for another... more »

• 89 charged in Medicare fraud busts in 8 cities

  May 14, 2013 1:27 PM

  WASHINGTON - Nearly 100 people, including 11 in Louisiana, are being charged for their roles in separate Medicare scams that billed the taxpayer-funded program for roughly $223 million in bogus charges spanning eight cities. Tuesday's announcement by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Attorney General Eric Holder marks... more »

• State Farm appeals Katrina fraud ruling

  May 9, 2013 2:45 PM

  GULFPORT, Miss.- State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. has asked a judge to void a jury's finding that the company defrauded the government involving a policyholder claim after Hurricane Katrina. Motions filed in U.S. District Court in Gulfport, Miss., also seek a new trial. The verdict came in April in... more »

• Report: Felons, prisoners and overpayments in SNAP Play Video

  May 6, 2013 3:43 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Nearly 2,000 prisoners and drug felons received more than $1 million in food stamp payments during 2011 and 2012, according to a report from the Louisiana Auditor's office. The state food stamp program, now known as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), gave 1,761 incarcerated participants $1,107,740,... more »

• Local woman sentenced in tax scheme

  April 19, 2013 10:33 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A 59-year-old Baton Rouge woman has been sentenced to a year in prison and ordered to pay more than $117,000 in restitution for a tax scheme involving homebuyer credits. U.S. Attorney Donald J. Cazayoux Jr. says Brenda Matthews pleaded guilty in October to making false claims to... more »

• Minister under investigation for fraud Play Video

  April 4, 2013 12:51 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A pastor is under investigation for the way he runs an apartment complex which houses people with mental disabilities. Reginald Stewman faces possible jail time for IRS fraud, the Social Security Administration is looking into his business practices, and now the state is investigating if he's... more »

• Man accused of selling bogus newspaper ads

  March 28, 2013 8:57 AM

  SHREVEPORT- A 61-year-old Minden man faces charges in at least six parishes and one Texas county in connection with an alleged scam that involved selling bogus newspaper ads. Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator says David Edward Dix is accused of going into several Caddo businesses and stating that he works... more »

• Former intern arrested on Medicaid fraud

  March 19, 2013 11:20 AM

  VILLE PLATTE - A 36-year-old Ville Platte man has been arrested on two counts of Medicaid fraud. The Louisiana Attorney General's Office said in news release Tuesday that Brady P. Hudspeth faces up to five years in prison and fines up to $20,000 on each count. Hudspeth was arrested Thursday... more »

• Ex-parish president Broussard gets jail time, fine

  February 25, 2013 11:20 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - Former Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard must serve 46 months in prison and pay up to $280,000 for his role in separate payroll fraud and bribery schemes. U.S. District Judge Hayden Head said Monday that $214,000 will repay Jefferson Parish for fraudulently paid salaries and benefits to... more »

• 2 arrested in home-improvement fraud cases

  February 21, 2013 8:18 AM

  LIVINGSTON - Livingston Parish sheriff's deputies have booked two men on three counts each of home improvement fraud. One of the men also was arrested and booked with allegedly discharging septic tank wastes on the ground near a residence in Albany. The fraud cases involve elderly victims paying for work... more »

• Ex-N.O. mayor pleads not guilty to bribery, fraud

  February 20, 2013 2:36 PM

  NEW ORLEANS- Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has pleaded not guilty to charges he accepted bribes, free trips and other gratuities in exchange for helping contractors secure millions of dollars in work for the city. A 21-count indictment last month accuses Nagin of accepting more than $200,000 in... more »

• 4 Alabama players charged with fraud, robbery

  February 12, 2013 9:40 AM

  TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Online jail records show four University of Alabama football players have been arrested on charges of credit card fraud and robbery. According to records posted on the Tuscaloosa Sheriff's Department website, running back Brent Calloway was arrested Monday on a charge of fraudulent use of a credit... more »

• Tax return rejected after dependants wrongfully claimed Play Video

  February 7, 2013 6:33 PM

  HOLDEN - After her tax return was rejected two years in a row, mother of three Melissa Peavy says she's fed up. "I'm just angry," said Peavy. "I'm angry, not for myself, but for my children." Two of her children have been claimed as dependants on a stranger's... more »

• Woman pleads guilty to impersonating OSHA official

  January 25, 2013 6:05 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A 46-year-old woman has pleaded guilty to federal charges that accuse her of posing as a federal worker to make nearly $216,000 giving fraudulent training classes to fishermen who hoped to get jobs cleaning up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010. Connie M. Knight was... more »

• Ex-New Orleans mayor charged with bribery, fraud

  January 18, 2013 12:30 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - Former New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has been indicted on 21 corruption charges including wire fraud, bribery and money laundering. The charges announced Friday come from a City Hall corruption investigation that already has resulted in guilty pleas by two former city officials and two businessmen. The... more »

• 2 women charged with Medicaid fraud

  January 18, 2013 6:47 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says a personal care attendant from New Orleans and one from Bastrop have been booked with unrelated charges of Medicaid fraud. He says both 23-year-old Lakeiqua Green of New Orleans and 31-year-old Jolonda Huff of Bastrop are accused of submitting time-sheets... more »

• 3 arrests in massive Canada maple syrup theft

  December 18, 2012 12:40 PM

  MONTREAL - Police in Canada say three people have been arrested in connection with a massive maple syrup heist from a Quebec warehouse, which put a dent in the global supply. Quebec produces up to 80 percent of the world's maple syrup. Authorities never disclosed the exact amount of maple... more »

• Baton Rouge woman booked with Medicaid fraud

  December 11, 2012 9:50 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A 34-year-old Baton Rouge woman has been booked with seven counts of Medicaid fraud for filing false claims. Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says Angela A. Taylor was arrested by investigators from the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit on Thursday. Caldwell says the complaint... more »

• 2 women plead guilty to SNAP fraud

  December 7, 2012 12:35 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Officials say an investigation by the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services' Fraud and Recovery Unit has led to two women pleading guilty to receiving nearly $30,000 in ineligible Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits. Officials say Katrina Howard of Winnsboro illegally obtained benefits from April 2008... more »

• Man arrested for payroll fraud at Honeywell

  November 30, 2012 2:54 PM

  Geismar- An employee of a chemical plant in Ascension Parish has been charged with one count of felony theft for claiming time worked and overtime hours he knowingly did not work since January 2011. Authorities say Jesse Brooks, who was an Operations Coordinator at Honeywell Inc. in Geismar, defrauded... more »

• Used car dealer sentenced in odometer fraud case

  November 30, 2012 10:31 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The Justice Department says Beau Michael Guidry of Baton Rouge has been sentenced in connection with an odometer tampering scheme that defrauded victims in and around Louisiana. U.S. District Judge James J. Brady sentenced Guidry Thursday to 20 months in prison and one year of supervised release... more »

• Sisters sentenced in federal identity theft, fraud case

  November 16, 2012 3:45 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A U. S. District judge sentenced two Baton Rouge sisters to four years in federal prison apiece for running a three-year, six-figure credit card scheme. U. S. Attorney Don Cazayoux Jr. said Trachell Brown was sentenced today to 51 months in prison for bank fraud and... more »

• 6 La. residents arrested on Medicaid fraud charges

  October 19, 2012 10:32 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Six personal care attendants from northeast Louisiana are accused of scheming to defraud the state's Medicaid program. Louisiana Attorney General James "Buddy" Caldwell's office says the six are accused of submitting timesheets to their employer that falsely stated they provided in-home services to Medicaid patients who... more »

• La. man indicted in alleged tax fraud scheme

  October 12, 2012 7:14 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A landfill executive awaiting trial on charges he conspired with his brother-in-law to embezzle nearly $1 million from a New Orleans-based construction management company has been indicted on new charges stemming from an alleged tax fraud scheme. Dominick Fazzio, a tax preparer who also serves as... more »

• 4 people in Baton Rouge, 87 others charged with Medicare fraud

  October 4, 2012 1:10 PM

  WASHINGTON- A federal strike force has charged 91 people, including doctors and nurses, in seven cities with Medicare fraud schemes involving $429 million in false billings. In Baton Rouge, four defendants, including a licensed practical nurse, are charged for their roles in fraud schemes involving approximately $2.4 million in... more »

• Four DPW workers arrested in EBR for fuel theft

  October 2, 2012 5:21 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Police arrested four Department of Public Works employees in East Baton Rouge Parish in suspicion of stealing gas from city-parish fueling stations. According to the EBR Mayor-President's Office, police arrested Ensley Joseph, Rodney Maxwell, Joyce Gatlin, and Lawrence Smith this morning. Interim Public Works Director... more »

• Woman arrested for arson and fraud, wanted breast implants Play Video

  September 27, 2012 6:26 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Fire investigators say 23-year-old Amanda Perkins wanted a breast augmentation. Instead she was arrested for two counts of arson with the intent to defraud and simple arson. Her arrest warrant says Williams admitted to setting her car on fire, and described how she did it. ... more »

• Woman gets prison in Medicare fraud plot

  September 11, 2012 4:04 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A woman who worked as a patient recruiter for several Louisiana medical equipment companies has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in a Medicare fraud scheme. U.S. District Judge James Brady in Baton Rouge also on Tuesday ordered 47-year-old Karen Rayburn to pay... more »

• $258M jury verdict for state of Louisiana upheld

  September 4, 2012 4:10 PM

  LAKE CHARLES - A $258 million judgment against health products maker Johnson & Johnson has been upheld by a state appeals court. A three-judge panel of the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal upheld a St. Landry Parish jury's decision that the company owed the money to the state for defrauding... more »

• Couple pleads guilty to Medicare fraud

  August 16, 2012 7:18 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A Baton Rouge couple faces possible prison time for a scheme that federal prosecutors say defrauded Medicare of $470,386 through bogus billings for power wheelchairs and other medical equipment neither requested nor needed by beneficiaries. Young Anyanwu pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of health care... more »

• AG: Man used fake diploma to get health care job

  August 15, 2012 4:50 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Authorities arrested the director of an adult day care facility in Baton Rouge after they got a tip he'd used a fake degree to get his job, according to the state Attorney General's Office. On Tuesday constables in Baton Rouge arrested Lee Earl Williams, Jr., 49,... more »

• Businesswoman indicted on federal charges

  August 14, 2012 10:32 AM

  LAFAYETTE - A Lafayette businesswoman has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering. Federal authorities say Catherine Romero is accused of defrauding investors out of more than $1.2 million in a scheme involving plans to manufacture goods created from alligator hides from 2007 to 2008. A trial... more »

• East Feliciana, Livingston residents sentenced for fraud

  August 1, 2012 2:50 PM

  BATON ROUGE - An East Feliciana Parish couple and four women from Livingston Parish have been sentenced for taking nearly $100,000 in ineligible food and child care assistance benefits. James and Luchan Myles, both of Clinton, pled no contest to charges of illegally obtaining $35,823 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance... more »

• Administration joins insurers to hit health fraud

  July 26, 2012 10:55 AM

  WASHINGTON - The Obama administration is launching an ambitious new drive against health care fraud by mining claims data from insurance companies and government programs in hopes of ferreting out bogus billing. Details of the plan are being announced Thursday at the White House by Health and Human Services Secretary... more »

• Zachary woman sentenced in Medicare fraud case

  July 25, 2012 7:23 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A Zachary woman has been sentenced to seven years in prison and ordered to pay restitution of $10.9 million for frauds committed against Medicare. Chikenna Jones and her attorney, Michael A. Fiser, told U.S. District Judge James J. Brady that the woman's role in the fraudulent... more »

• WBRZ mentioned in email scam

  July 23, 2012 12:21 PM

  BATON ROUGE - News 2 viewers contacted WBRZ Channel 2 today, saying they received a scam email which claimed the TV station was giving away gift cards worth thousands of dollars. The email is not true, and could lead to people's personal information being stolen. The email asks... more »

• Orleans official pleads guilty in Katrina fraud

  July 18, 2012 11:51 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A New Orleans city councilman pleaded guilty Wednesday to a federal criminal charge of misusing federal money intended to help a nonprofit organization after Hurricane Katrina and diverting some of it to one of his political campaigns. Jon Johnson, who is 63, faces up to 5 years... more »

• 48 charged in massive Medicaid fraud case

  July 17, 2012 3:36 PM

  NEW YORK - A nationwide prescription drug ring bought mountains of HIV medications and other drugs from down-and-out Medicaid recipients in New York City, then marketed the pills to pharmacies that dispensed them to unsuspecting consumers, authorities said Tuesday. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan detailed the scheme at a news conference... more »

• Homeowners learn how to spot crooked contractors Play Video

  June 23, 2012 8:29 PM

  BATON ROUGE-Homeowners are learning how to out-smart would be-crooked contractors, from a woman who says she's made it her mission to teach them how to spot a fraud. Phae Howard says," My grandmother was ripped off by a contractor. So I decided that I'm going to what I can... more »

• Man found guilty in tax fraud case

  June 21, 2012 7:05 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A federal court jury has convicted a Baton Rouge man on six tax charges that carry possible penalties of as much as 18 years in prison and $1.5 million in fines. Ray Carr said Wednesday he will ask the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to... more »

• Painter scheduled for arraignment on federal charges

  June 13, 2012 10:28 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Former Alcohol and Tobacco Control commissioner Murphy Painter is scheduled to be in federal court for an arraignment this afternoon. He faces 42 felony counts of computer fraud, making false statements and identity theft. He's accused of misusing his authority to run unnecessary background checks on... more »

• Sentencing in oil spill fraud case postponed

  June 13, 2012 6:34 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - A federal judge has agreed to postpone a sentencing hearing for a woman who pleaded guilty to submitting a fraudulent claim for money from BP's oil spill compensation fund. Rokeisha Barrios was scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday, but U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance agreed to delay the... more »

• Gulfport man gets 12.5 years for oil spill fraud

  June 7, 2012 5:09 PM

  GULFPORT, Miss. - A Gulfport man, identified as the mastermind of a family scheme to illegally obtain about $100,000 in oil spill recovery money, has been sentenced to more than 12 years in prison. The Sun Herald reports U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden sentenced 50-year-old Bobby Earl Keys to 12½... more »

• Tax preparer found guilty of bank fraud

  June 6, 2012 6:52 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A Baton Rouge tax preparer has been convicted on 22 counts of bank fraud, assisting the preparation of false tax returns, impeding the Internal Revenue Service and money laundering. A jury of seven women and five men returned a decision in the two-week trial after approximately... more »

• New steps to combat food stamp fraud

  May 24, 2012 11:47 AM

  WASHINGTON- The government is trying to crack down on food stamp recipients who are ripping off taxpayers by illegally selling their benefit cards for cash. The Agriculture Department wants to curb the practice by giving states more power to investigate people who repeatedly claim to lose their benefit cards and... more »

• Gov't taking new steps to combat food stamp fraud

  May 24, 2012 7:30 AM

  WASHINGTON - The government is trying to crack down on food stamp recipients who are ripping off taxpayers by illegally selling their benefit cards for cash. The Agriculture Department wants to curb the practice by giving states more power to investigate people who repeatedly claim to lose their benefit cards... more »

• Grand jury indicts Painter for fraud, ID theft

  May 23, 2012 10:29 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A federal grand jury indicted Murphy Painter, the former Alcohol Tobacco Control commissioner, with a number of charges today related to allegations he misused his authority. The grand jury indicted Painter for for computer fraud, making false statements and aggravated identity theft. There were 49 counts... more »

• NY man who dressed as dead mom sentenced for fraud

  May 22, 2012 12:36 PM

  NEW YORK - A New York man who dressed up like his dead mother in a bizarre real estate fraud has been sentenced to more than 13 years behind bars. Thomas Parkin was convicted May 3 on charges including grand larceny and mortgage fraud. He was sentenced Monday to 13... more »

• Checking Out: Food Stamp Fraud airs tonight at 10 Play Video

  May 10, 2012 5:21 PM

  BATON ROUGE - The State Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control (ATC) says millions of your tax dollars are being wasted on people abusing food stamp cards. "These food stamps that are meant to buy food for families and children are being used to buy alcohol and tobacco," said... more »

• Seven indicted on health care fraud charges

  May 2, 2012 10:52 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Seven people were arrested, accused of making a quarter-of-a-billion dollars off of fake Medicare claims in Baton Rouge. Nationwide, 100 others busted in a huge federal takedown involving health-care fraud that totaled $450 million. Agents say these seven have been at it since 2005, operating out... more »

• Medicaid fraud arrests in Baton Rouge

  May 2, 2012 1:23 PM

  BATON ROUGE - More than 100 defendants are being charged in seven cities, including Baton Rouge, with Medicare fraud in a nationwide crackdown. Federal authorities said the unrelated scams allegedly bilked the taxpayer-funded program of more than $450 million - the highest dollar amount in a single Medicare bust in... more »

• 4 plead guilty to Medicare fraud

  April 27, 2012 7:58 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Prosecutor say four people have pleaded guilty in Baton Rouge federal court to a charge that they participated in a Medicare-fraud conspiracy that resulted in fraudulent billings that totaled as much as $225 million over nearly seven years. Baton Rouge residents Teryl C. Vincent, Todd D. Ulmer... more »

• ID Theft leads to Prison

  April 23, 2012 7:20 PM

  A man from the Houston area got six years in prison for fraud related to stealing $200,000 worth of Apple iPads and iPhones in Louisiana and Texas. Sharif John Reid pleaded guilty and must pay $158,000 in restitution. Reid was arrested last year when he tried to use a fake... more »

• BR officials on alert after credit card breach Play Video

  April 2, 2012 4:44 PM

  BATON ROUGE- Officials in Baton Rouge are on alert after a major company announced nearly 1.5 million credit card numbers across the nation may have been breached Friday. Global Payments made the announcement. The problem is serious. Global Payments is one of the largest nationwide processing companies, and... more »

• Developer pleads guilty to bank fraud conspiracy

  March 16, 2012 8:35 AM

  NEW ORLEANS - Federal prosecutors say a Covington developer has admitted conspiring to get mortgages for bad loan risks. They say the plot was uncovered during investigation of the federal bank bailout program. U.S. Attorney Jim Letten says 43-year-old Troy Fouquet pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of conspiracy to... more »

• Navy reassigns 3 Female submariners in Fraud case

  March 2, 2012 7:24 PM

  Three female officers in the Navy's submarine force were reassigned as part of an investigation into financial misconduct in their previous jobs. Other Navy personnel not assigned to subs are also targets of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. It has to do with travel fraud. The Navy says the allegations... more »

• Jury has more questions in Grace trail

  March 2, 2012 12:46 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Jurors in former St. Gabriel mayor George Grace's federal corruption trial sent judge Maurice Hicks a question Friday morning at 10:07. They wanted to know if they all must agree on all paragraphs in count 8 of Grace's indictment. Grace faces 13 counts of extortion, bribery, fraud... more »

• Former abstinence director sentenced

  March 1, 2012 4:57 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's former director for the Governor's Program on Abstinence has been sentenced to six years in prison. 64-year-old Gail Ray Dignam was convicted last year on two counts of mail fraud. U.S. District Judge James J. Brady also ordered Dignam to pay restitution and to... more »

• Jurors in Grace trial vote to go home

  February 29, 2012 9:42 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Jurors in former St. Gabriel mayor George Grace's federal corruption trial voted unanimously to go home Wednesday night instead of deliberating. They will return to the courtroom Thursday to decide Grace's guilt or innocence. Grace is charged with extortion, fraud, bribery and racketeering. The feds said Grace... more »

• Prosecutor: Stanford flushed away investor funds

  February 29, 2012 11:27 AM

  HOUSTON- A federal prosecutor says Texas tycoon R. Allen Stanford flushed away investor funds on yachts and businesses that were money pits as part of a massive Ponzi scheme. Prosecutor William Stellmach said Wednesday that Stanford lined his pockets "with billions of dollars of other people's money" as closing arguments... more »

• Grace takes stand last time to defend himself Play Video

  February 28, 2012 5:01 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Former St. Gabriel Mayor George Grace took the stand one last time in federal court Tuesday to defend himself before the defense rested their case. Grace said he never exchanged his official position as mayor for bribes, something rebuttal witnesses denied. Grace is charged with racketeering, fraud,... more »

• Jurors laugh while George Grace testifies Play Video

  February 27, 2012 5:46 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Jurors laughed aloud while Grace testified in his own defense on the stand Monday morning. Grace avoided prosecutor Corey Amundson's questions over and over, but eventually testified he exchanged official acts as mayor for benefits. Amundson showed video of Grace talking with an undercover FBI operative... more »

• FTC: Tax-related ID theft complaints on rise

  February 25, 2012 10:24 AM

  WASHINGTON- The government says the number of identity theft complaints involving tax and wage fraud is soaring even as law enforcement agencies are trying to crack down on the problem. Federal Trade Commission officials says that 24 percent of the nearly 279,000 identity theft complaints it received last year came... more »

• Prosecutors rest in fraud trial of Texas financier

  February 15, 2012 2:48 PM

  HOUSTON - Prosecutors have rested their case in the fraud trial of jailed Texas tycoon R. Allen Stanford. The final witness for prosecutors wrapped up his testimony in Houston federal court Wednesday. Prosecutors spent three weeks presenting more than a dozen witnesses in support of their claims Stanford bilked investors... more »

• Owners of Hammond personal care business indicted in Medicaid fraud scheme

  February 14, 2012 3:02 PM

  BATON ROUGE- A Baton Rouge grand jury has returned indictments against the owners of a Hammond personal care business for their role in operating a criminal enterprise designed to siphon dollars from the Louisiana Medicaid Program. Several of the owners family members were also charged for their involvement in... more »

• Accountant bills N.O. Traffic Court for nearly $1.3M

  December 27, 2011 1:46 PM

  NEW ORLEANS - An accountant billed New Orleans Traffic Court nearly $1.3 million dollars in less than three years. The Times-Picayune says records and checks show that Vandale Thomas started with a one-year, $75,000 contract - but billed the city for that much within six weeks, and just kept going.... more »

• Former Baton Rouge man in federal custody

  December 6, 2011 3:15 AM

  BATON ROUGE - A man who faked his own death 16 years ago is now in federal custody. Milton Windsor Harris, 67, appeared Friday before a U.S. Magistrate in Baton Rouge. U.S. Attorney Don Cazayoux Jr. says Harris was apprehended in Northern Ireland earlier this year. Harris... more »

• State moves to revoke BR daycare's license

  November 29, 2011 12:14 PM

  BATON ROUGE - State regulators have moved to revoke the child care license of a Baton Rouge facility because of alleged falsified attendance records and inadequate supervision. Ruth Johnson, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, says the department issued the revocation notice last week against... more »

• Doctors continue to work while under investigation

  November 21, 2011 4:09 PM

  BATON ROUGE - Evidence amassed by the nearly two-year-old Medicare Fraud Strike Force finds four Louisiana physicians wrote hundreds of bogus prescriptions that powered multimillion-dollar health-care frauds in the Baton Rouge area. The Advocate reports all four physicians remain licensed to practice medicine, including two who pleaded guilty and... more »

• Judge guts Smith's defense

  October 26, 2011 6:25 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- A judge gutted Port Allen Police Chief Fred Smith's defense, telling Smith's attorney he cannot use "entrapment" as a defense during closing arguments Thursday. Smith's attorney, J. David Bourland, pleaded with Judge Brian A. Jackson to allow the entrapment defense, saying, "My client was emphatic he wanted... more »

• Former Port Allen mayor takes stand in police chief's trial

  October 25, 2011 6:15 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Port Allen Police Chief Fred Smith was "ready to go" on bribes, according to former Port Allen Mayor Derek Lewis, who took the stand Tuesday afternoon against his former friend. Lewis described the trip he and Smith took to New Orleans on the dime of undercover FBI... more »

• Testimony begins in Smith trial

  October 21, 2011 6:22 PM

  BATON ROUGE-- Official police badges, official police commissions, and classified information were among the things prosecutors told the jury Port Allen Police Chief Fred Smith gave out in exchange for cash, hotel stays, and sports tickets. Jurors watched video of Smith counting $800 in an undercover FBI agent's car.... more »

• Home health care providers say audits are unfair

  October 4, 2011 4:10 PM

  BATON ROUGE - In-home health providers who take care of Louisiana Medicaid patients say they have been unfairly targeted by health department audits that claimed they owed $4.2 million in overpayments and fines. Nearly every provider sanctioned by the audits is appealing the decision. Jacquelyn Blaney, who runs a... more »

• DCFS investigations lead to three arrests for assistance fraud

  September 30, 2011 2:48 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) investigation has resulted in the arrests of three individuals in St. Tammany and Livingston Parishes. They are accused of defrauding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly called Food Stamps, and other DCFS assistance programs of more... more »

• 2 Ala. residents plead guilty to oil spill fraud

  September 26, 2011 11:59 AM

  MOBILE, Ala. - Two residents have admitted filing false claims so they could receive money meant for people harmed by last year's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Pamela Washington and Robert Brown pleaded guilty last week to conspiracy to commit fraud. The Mobile Press-Register reports that prosecutors... more »

• BR tax preparer sentenced for fraud

  September 15, 2011 3:44 PM

  BATON ROUGE - A judge sentenced a Baton Rouge tax preparer today after she pleaded guilty to filing for more than $120,000 in bogus tax refunds. U. S. District Court Judge Brian Jackson gave Melissa Edwards 30 months in prison and ordered her to pay more than $56,000 in... more »

• Shooting of Bullet Proof Vest called Fraud

  September 12, 2011 7:24 PM

  Prosecutors in Los Angeles say a school police officer shot his own bulletproof vest then planted a shell casing to claim a gunman shot him so he could get out of work on medical leave while collecting full pay. Jeff Stenroos is on trial for preparing a false police report... more »

• Panel: Widespread waste and fraud in war spending

  August 31, 2011 3:06 AM

  WASHINGTON- An independent panel that concluded as much as $60 billion in U.S. funds has been lost to waste and fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past decade will release results today of its three-year investigation into wartime spending. In its final report to Congress, the Commission on Wartime... more »

• 9/11 Fraud

  August 29, 2011 7:19 PM

  A retired Navy Commander was found guilty of defrauding the victims' compensation fund by exaggerating his injuries after the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. Charles Coughlin was even honored for valor for going back inside the building to help others. He got $331,034 in compensation from the fund set up... more »

• Slidell woman 'hid' in plain sight for 11 years

  August 28, 2011 4:14 PM

  SLIDELL, La.- Authorities say a Slidell woman who was given a month to put her affairs in order never reported to prison for a four-year fraud sentence - and lived out in the open for more than 11 years. Linda Jean Doria, 60, was arrested last month, and is... more »

• Ex-director at Southern pleads guilty to fraud

  August 19, 2011 6:30 AM

  BATON ROUGE- A former director of information technologies at Southern University has pleaded guilty in federal court to mail fraud that cost the school $157,366. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Walt Green tells The Advocate a second defendant, a tenured mechanical engineering professor, remains a fugitive. Scott D. Woodall of Denham... more »

• Ex-White Castle mayor's sentencing postponed

  August 11, 2011 11:36 AM

  BATON ROUGE - Former White Castle Mayor Maurice Brown has learned he could be sentenced to a prison term ranging from 19 years to 24 years for his March conviction on federal racketeering and fraud charges. The Advocate reports Brown's sentencing was postponed indefinitely Wednesday by U.S. District Judge... more »

• Personal care services agency owner arrested

  July 26, 2011 11:33 AM

  BATON ROUGE - The owner of a personal care services agency has been arrested and booked with defrauding the state's Medicaid program. Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says Patricia A. Bell of Rayville surrendered to authorities last week. He says Bell, the owner of Cookies Helping Hand Inc., was charged... more »